What does Nebula\Acoustica do poorly?

[electro]

I think Nebula can't drive analog tape as hard as an algo based emulation which is why CDSoundmaster R2R requires multiple plugins. That might be its only shortcoming.

The excellent Phaser Bundle by Tim Petherick shows how it excels at time based FX.
https://www.timpetherick.co.uk/classic-phasers/

[dionenoid]

Found one video comparing different AA pre amps

Clickbait nonsense from an idiot who has no idea what he's doing.

He's using a preamp after a processing chain, trying to drive something with an input knob that's for avoiding clipping, not letting the preamps load so comparing bypassed signals, using the wrong plugin of Blond, and trying to drive an emulation of hardware that's known for its huge headroom. Mistake after mistake after mistake.

That said, most AA preamps are very subtle. They create very clean harmonics, and a lot of them (mostly the older ones) cannot be driven. But you'll hear the differences when using them first in a processing chain. Just like how you would use hardware preamps.

Anyway, we can endlessly discuss if these subtle harmonics are useful, but saying that they do nothing is complete and utter nonsense.

[dionenoid]

And back on topic. What they do wrong imo is not keeping up with the times : Automation is virtually impossible, no sidechaining and mostly no resizing and/or presets. Also, they keep releasing new stuff even when the previous ones aren't properly updated yet.

And i really hope they finally implement the promised updates for their installer, making it possible to not have to install unused samplerates and/or ZL versions.

[DCrown]

Found one video comparing different AA pre amps

Clickbait nonsense from an idiot who has no idea what he's doing.

He's using a preamp after a processing chain, trying to drive something with an input knob that's for avoiding clipping, not letting the preamps load so comparing bypassed signals, using the wrong plugin of Blond, and trying to drive an emulation of hardware that's known for its huge headroom. Mistake after mistake after mistake.

That said, most AA preamps are very subtle. They create very clean harmonics, and a lot of them (mostly the older ones) cannot be driven. But you'll hear the differences when using them first in a processing chain. Just like how you would use hardware preamps.

Anyway, we can endlessly discuss if these subtle harmonics are useful, but saying that they do nothing is complete and utter nonsense.

Watched the video and the video shows clearly that AA pre amps do nothing, nothing. I do not not even have to watch the video to know it, I demoed them and they do nothing. You call nothing subtle, that's ridiculous.
Of course one has to move first and first and foremost input knob of a pre amp, that's what it's all about and would expect saturation, but there is nothing.
And it does not matter at all whether it's processed or unprocessed, it's about showing that plugins just have a gui and that's it.
Writing that someone is an idiot and then showing that you are a one more idiot yourself.
I remember when this video was released there were comments like yours, the youtuber explained and some obviously deleted their stupid comments or apologized.
Wrong plugin of Blond?
Maybe go to Homepage of Acustica Audio and find the pre amp plugin gui and compare it to the one in the video.
Plugins are bypassed? , in this case maybe also use your ears or read comments.
Acustica Audio's focus is on selling guis!

[Leo1999]

I also think aa should improve their plugins instead of releasing new ones, but they can do whatever they want, at least they have made some good eqs.
Whether to use something on processed or unprocessed tracks, well, there are no rules, especially not in digital world imo
You can also track vocals with compressor or whatever, can't you?!
Blond is the one with some effect, but like he says it's just adding some mud with different eq settings under the hood, that's what it sounds like

[DCrown]

@Leo1999
I agree guis + some good eqs

[izonin]

You can easily check it yourself. Load several Nebula preamps in series. At least I can hear a difference. It's just too subtle, and almost inaudible when you load only one instance of the plugin.

(Nebula is also great for reverbs, of course, since it's based on convolution.)

[dionenoid]

Watched the video and the video shows clearly that AA pre amps do nothing, nothing. I do not not even have to watch the video to know it, I demoed them and they do nothing. You call nothing subtle, that's ridiculous.
Of course one has to move first and first and foremost input knob of a pre amp, that's what it's all about and would expect saturation, but there is nothing.
And it does not matter at all whether it's processed or unprocessed, it's about showing that plugins just have a gui and that's it.
Writing that someone is an idiot and then showing that you are a one more idiot yourself.
I remember when this video was released there were comments like yours, the youtuber explained and some obviously deleted their stupid comments or apologized.
Wrong plugin of Blond?
Maybe go to Homepage of Acustica Audio and find the pre amp plugin gui and compare it to the one in the video.
Plugins are bypassed? , in this case maybe also use your ears or read comments.
Acustica Audio's focus is on selling guis!

I use the plugins and hear the difference. I looked in Plugindoctor and saw the added harmonics. I compared with my hardware and hear how close they are in sound.

Just use the preamp before the rest of the processing. That's how they are supposed to be used, same as console emulations or hardware preamps.

And like i said : Many cannot be driven, they only add clean harmonics. Because they're not meant to add tons of saturation, or distort, or be driven. They are supposed to be used first in a chain, adding clean harmonics. Just like the hardware they emulate.

Exception is Blond, which has a plugin called Preamp Mixer, added to be driven and saturate heavily. Nothing subtle about that one.

[dionenoid]

Just to put this useless discussion to rest, here are some Plugindoctor screen grabs, of the Camel and Pink preamps. For comparison i tested bx_console SSL4000 also, draw your own conclusion.

Also did some null-tests. Pink and Camel preamps on a rendered audio file (Microtonic claps in this case). Clear differences, even between different preamps.

As you can see, there's lots of stuff happening, so saying that the preamps do nothing is utter nonsense.

The differences are also easy to hear, especially when you use the preamps before the usual dynamics and eq processing. Demo and test for yourself.

[DCrown]

Camel I bought, I like the eq, but the rest is doing nothing for me. Especially the pre amps and comp are very disappointing. Is subtle the new nothing?
Showing some curves is nonsense, use your ears! That's the main problem nowadays, analyzers have replaced the ears
But if these pre amps do something good to you and your tracks, great, use it, of course!
I checked the preamps of camel many times, they just do nothing and if I checked now, the problem could be, I could think to hear something influenced by your post, that's called manipulation, that's how selling and promotion and hype work

[plexuss]

Camel I bought, I like the eq, but the rest is doing nothing for me. Especially the pre amps and comp are very disappointing. Is subtle the new nothing?
Showing some curves is nonsense, use your ears! That's the main problem nowadays, analyzers have replaced the ears
But if these pre amps do something good to you and your tracks, great, use it, of course!
I checked the preamps of camel many times, they just do nothing and if I checked now, the problem could be, I could think to hear something influenced by your post, that's called manipulation, that's how selling and promotion and hype work

This is not how audio engineering works. Maybe you'll figure out one day. But you have to put your ego aside to get there. In the meantime can you please stop with this and let the rest of us work in peace. thanks.

[Leo1999]

Camel I bought, I like the eq, but the rest is doing nothing for me. Especially the pre amps and comp are very disappointing. Is subtle the new nothing?
Showing some curves is nonsense, use your ears! That's the main problem nowadays, analyzers have replaced the ears
But if these pre amps do something good to you and your tracks, great, use it, of course!
I checked the preamps of camel many times, they just do nothing and if I checked now, the problem could be, I could think to hear something influenced by your post, that's called manipulation, that's how selling and promotion and hype work

It's nothing new you posted, it's been told and written a hundred times that music production has made a change from ears to eyes, but that's the way it is.
Most productions made in not perfected treated rooms, so what do you expect? .
I have just read that Spotify has about 35.000 uploads every day and about 85% are so called bed room productions.
I really can't comprehend not to accept that things change and always will.
You don't like analyzers? You say "use your ears!" in a not perfect treated room or headphones? Wake up, it's 2022!
I did marketing for many years, what do you expect marketing to be like? , you have to sell and make people believe something is good and that's legit, call it manipulation, you could also call it a clever strategy !
I don't care whether Camel's pre amp is useless or not, the eq is a masterpiece!

[yuk]

I compared tim petherick u76 with other 1176 compressor plugins on plugin doctor. Looking at how sine wave changed with the short release setting, the waveform changed to something between triangular and sine wave, similar to other softube and arturia plug-ins when the preamp was inserted. Without the preamp, sine waveform was just slightly distorted. Yamaha's compressor 276 had a similar result with the u76 without the preamp.

[Digivolt]

they just do nothing

You can put them in Plugin Doctor to see they are doing "something" it's just that something isn't perceivable for yourself (I don't always hear a difference either to be fair but I wouldn't say it's doing nothing at all)

[HAL76]

CPU - yes. But anyway - it´s about sound and you can bounce.

Their pre´s are a science on its own (use EQCurveAnalyzer!) and not for me, while the only aspect I struggle with sometimes is the missing (soft) bypass switches (of their older plugins).

Don´t know when I used a algorithmic eq the last time (despite of sampler/synth FX).